Traditional Treatments for Back Pain

When Dorothy followed the yellow brick road, she was told to do so by those who wanted her to get where she wanted go. Well, as humans when we blindly follow recommendations even by individuals who have good intentions, it may not always be your best option. Therefore, I am preparing this article to compare and contrast what are known as traditional treatments vs. complementary or alternative treatments for back pain. Remember there is rarely only one reason for your back pain and almost never one silver bullet fix. You may need to try several approaches till you find what works for you.

So when reading this article and thinking back on your visits to medical professionals, did you have the big picture or were you just following that yellow brick road? If you have been down that road, or if you are just starting to suffer from back pain it's never too late to seek out new and more encompassing information about your condition when trying to find a solution that works for you.

Orthopedic Care

One of the first places many people go when they experience back pain is the orthopedic specialist (surgeon) and a visit usually last 5-10 minutes. They will typically look at the problem/symptomatic area and often fail to look at the body as a whole. If you've been to an orthopedic specialist for your back pain, did they do a full body physical evaluation (takes 30 mins. or more)? Here are some of the common treatments used / prescribed by orthopedic specialists:

Cortisone Shots

Cortisone is a catabolic steroid which is intended to reduce inflammation by killing off the tissue in the inflamed area. now let me ask you, does that make any sense to you at all?

Not only are these injections quite painful, but they rarely result in any pain relief and if they do it is short lived, usually 1-2 weeks if at all. Plus, it does NOTHING to identify or address the cause of the pain. it is only intended to treat the symptom. It's for those reasons that we do not recommend them.

Anti-inflammatory Drugs

Just the name should scare you away. just like cortisone shots, anti-inflammatory medications do not identify or address the cause of your pain and for many people, they deliver little pain relief. These medications also deliver serious side effects! The main reason they are prescribed is money. and if you don't believe me, do the research and you'll see for yourself. The drug industry is huge and unfortunately, they have a huge influence on the whole medical community, including the doctors.

I challenge you to find a drug that will fix your back problem. You'll be looking forever because there is no way a medication can fix a physical problem so avoid medications at all costs.

Back Surgery

Surgery for back pain is very common and more often than not, the individual still has pain afterwards (or it returns within weeks) and sometimes even new problems. Very rarely is a surgery the answer.

For example, many people have surgery for herniated discs. The logic behind the surgery is if you remove the piece/portion of the disc that is putting pressure on the nerve the problem is solved. Unfortunately, the same forces that forced that disc to protrude or bulge will likely force more of the disc out, or another disc out. Surgery should always be the last resort, and even then I'd question it.

Physical Therapy

Physical Therapy is traditionally the next step after seeing an Orthopedic Doctor. That is if surgery is not recommended. So what should you expect? The process will start with an evaluation and here may be the start of the problem. The doctor has to write a prescription with a diagnosis on it. You give the prescription to the PT and he or she will perform an evaluation. Chances are the PT will simply confirm the diagnosis from the doctor, however the hope should be that they take the extra step to look for the root cause of your pain. They may but chances are they have several other clients in the office at the same time and simply do not have the time.

Therefore, without a comprehensive evaluation to identify the root cause of you pain they will simply treat your symptoms. We have just identified the second problem. The health care industry is required to show improvement with each and every session so the push is to reduce your symptoms to show progress in order for them to get paid. The long and short of it is that yes your pain can be reduced but the root cause rarely gets addressed, meaning that the pain and your suffering will return again and again.

When selecting a Physical Therapy office you may want to ask how many patients the office sees in a day and how many PTs they have on staff, then ask how many patients can a PT work with in an hour. Do not be surprised to hear that a PT can see up to three patients in an hour. That's you and two others at the same time. Do you think you will get the attention and proper treatments you need? I doubt it.

There is a little joke in Physical Therapy when treating patients and it has to do with what course of modalities you will get. The joke is called Shake and Bake and it refers to everyone gets the same treatment protocol. that way it can be timed so that your PT can see other people simultaneously. What goes into a shake and bake treatment? It may start with a spin on a stationary bike or a trot a treadmill than you will get a 3 to 5 minute Ultrasound over the effected area followed by Electrical Stimulation to the area with a little Ice strapped to your body and to finish off your session you will get a hand out with exercises you should do at home. Certainly not a recipe for success.

Chiropractic Care

One of the most common treatments for back pain is Chiropractic Care. The approach consists of physical manipulations of bones and joints in an attempt to line things back up and it's recommended typically 2-3 times per week.

The problem with this approach is that the same forces (muscles, tendons, and ligaments) will likely pull the bones and joints right back out of place again. Also, most (not all) chiropractors will spend 15 minutes with you if your lucky.

Ask people who see a chiropractor how long they've been going. I hear of people who have been going for 10-15 years and still don't have a healthy back. Look, the fact is chiropractic care is lacking.

Unless the chiropractor combines the two approaches, it doesn't make sense. The ONLY way chiropractic care makes sense is if you are addressing the muscle imbalances that are pulling the bones and joints out of place to begin with and that requires strengthening and stretching exercises that are chosen specifically to correct your muscle imbalances.

For Alternative methods of treating Back Pain please see Alternative Treatments for Treating and Eliminating Back Pain

_____________________

Article by Jesse Cannone of www.losethebackpain.com Jesse is a certified personal fitness trainer and post-rehab specialist and he has helped hundreds of individuals to eliminate their back pain. Visit his site now and be sure to sign up for his free email course on eliminating back pain.